Ship of the Line
by Admiral Saris
Summary: This story begins just after the Loguetown arc. Smoker is forced to stay in Loguetown by his superiors, and this story follows Tashigi and her crew of crack marines… read Misfits and losers… as they set sail to prove themselves and spread a little justice.


This story takes place just after the Loguetown arc. Smoker is forced to stay in Loguetown by his superiors, and this story follows Tashigi and her crew crack marines… Read Misfits and losers… as they set sail to prove themselves and spread a little justice.

"_East Blue, where marine careers go to die."- Marine saying._

* * *

_Loguetown, Naval Office_

Tashigi stood stiffly at attention, fervently hoping for any excuse to be anywhere else. She did her damnedest to keep her eyes locked straight ahead and to otherwise pay no attention to anyone in front of her. She'd been waiting to report to Captain Smoker that his ship was ready to depart when her superior officer and Commodore Nezumi had stormed into the room screaming at each other. Well, Smoker was yelling, but Nezumi was certainly emotionally invested and his screeching voice was rising dangerously close to a… well not a yell. A high pitched variation of a yell. Squealing?

"I need to chase after him," Smoker bellowed as he sat down behind his desk, smoke billowing from his mouth and nostrils, "that pirate is dangerous and if he gets onto the Grand Line there's no telling what damage he's going to do!"

She wasn't looking, okay she was looking a little, maybe just a glance or two. But from the corner of her eyes she saw Nezumi scowl, and he deliberately didn't say anything about Smoker, who was only a captain, taking a seat and not offering one to a commodore. Probably wise. Tashigi thought. Nezumi had rank but at the end of the day… well Nezumi was done. According to rumor, which Tashigi listened to far more than she probably should have, Nezumi was the worst kind of Marine. He took bribes, looked the other way, played favorites…almost any rumor tied to corruption could be laid at his feet. The most damning thing in his personnel file though was the cold honest truth that he was weak. He wasn't a skilled sailor, gunman, or swordsmen, he didn't have Haki, and he didn't have a cursed fruit. He was a political officer. Promoted for his administrative capabilities and by his political patrons he'd risen as high as he could go. The Marines were ultimately a meritocracy and favoritism mixed with a little cleverness could only take you so far. Nezumi had hit that glass ceiling. Smoker hadn't. Yes, Smoker was only a captain. Smoker also had a bad reputation around HQ for insubordination and mouthing off to superiors. A bad enough reputation that he found himself exiled to east blue along with the likes of Nezumi. But barring an unlikely disgrace or death in the field, Smoker would someday be wearing an Admiral's coat, probably only a Vice-Admiral or Rear Admiral instead of Full Admiral. But he'd at least make flag rank. It was an inevitable. Smoker was strong, in a Navy that needed every body it could. In a Navy that needed every strong fighter it could muster, and it needed them yesterday, all his other faults could be forgiven.

It was a glass ceiling Tashigi found herself hitting the bottom of already. A Marine Lieutenant, she was a fair swordswoman, but lacking Haki or a cursed fruit, the odds of her ever making full commander were…well she sucked at math. Not good. Tashigi was a native of East Blue, she simply didn't have the kind of behind the scenes support Nezumi did.

"I agree," The whisker faced commodore said, "I agree so much I had headquarters put a 30,000,000 Berri bounty on his head. But I can't let you sail off after him. You're the most powerful marine in East Blue. We need you here to keep East Blue pirates from sailing onto the Grand Line, or worse Grand Line Pirates sailing into East Blue."

Smoker started to say something, it was probably really impressive. He stood up, slammed his hand into the desk, and the omnipresent smoke burst out of his nose like steam. But the commodore was just as angry and slammed a hand of his own on the desk.

"Enough! We've been arguing about this for an hour. It's not happening. End of story. I'm willing to hear any other suggestions you may have. But you aren't leaving."

"I'm not leaving." Smoker scowled.

"Not happening." Nezumi scowled right back.

"Well we have to send someone!"

"No we don't!" Nezumi said, "It's called jurisdiction and ours is East Blue. Our job is to protect _East Blue _not chase pirates into the grand line. We'll call headquarters and they'll inform the marines at the beginning of the grand line to keep an eye on him.

"What about Tashigi! We can send her." Smoker grinned, crossing his arms in satisfaction. "She's a master swordswoman with plenty of experience on ships." Tashigi had to bite her lip so she didn't explode in shock. Bit it hard. So she stood there, in veritable lip agony while her superiors debated her future like she wasn't there.

"I just told you we aren't sending anyone!" the commodore snapped. Smoker ignored him. "Yes she's perfect. She may not be strong enough to fight that straw hat head on, but she's good enough to sail rings around his ship and clever enough to catch him by surprise."

Nezumi, despite his many moral failings, was actually a cunning little rat. Bluntly he was here to stop Smoker from leaving. Sure, he was a pain in Nezumi's ass, but collectively the Marines in East Blue were barely qualified to handle jaywalkers much less pirates. And occasionally even corrupt marines needed to get some actual work done. Quite frankly he didn't want to send any marines anywhere, but he'd trade a dozen of Tashigi and five hundred rank and file marines if it meant keeping Smoker in Loguetown.

"Fine. We'll send Tashigi," the commodore said, "after she proves she's good enough. It'll take us a little while to figure out where straw hat is heading anyway."

"Good," Smoker puffed, sitting back down with a victorious grin. "She'll need a ship and crew. A good crew."

"This is east blue, there are no good crews." Nezumi deadpanned. Smoker gave him a flat look, but didn't argue the point.

Tashigi stood there, still at attention, knees locked, blood starting to go down her chin from the lip she was biting to keep from saying anything.

"But yes, I'll get her a ship and a crew. The best crew that I can find. Then I'll give her a job. A hard job, and if she handles it well,"

"She will." Smoker said, letting a blast of smoke out and interrupting his superior without a second though.

"Then we'll send her after Monkey D. Luffy and his crew."

"Good," Smoker said turning his gaze to Tashigi. "Hey, hear that you're getting a ship."

Tashigi, who'd been standing straight backed with locked knees for far longer than she should have, felt her eyes roll back as she fainted.

The two officers were silent for a moment. "See," Smoker said, "she's so excited she's fainted!"

"..."

* * *

Notes: This is a short prologue setting up Tashigi's future and giving a quick taste of what I have planned for the story. Tashigi is the main character, and next chapter we'll meet her crew, many of whom are some of the real dregs of the East Blue saga, but are so far all canon characters. Hopefully I'll have the next chapter out in a couple days.

Note 2: I have Tashigi here as a Lieutenant Junior Grade, but in canon she's a Master Chief Petty Officer. That's around an E7 or E8, depending on how liberal we get with the "master". So while an O2 slot might seem like a promotion, and actually kind of is. I'm a lot happier with a twenty year old Lieutenant than a twenty year old Master Chief Petty Officer. Of Course, that could just be the, admittedly self-proclaimed, Admiral in me.


End file.
